You Promised
by carzla
Summary: [One Shot] [AU] They met one day under his hideout and became friends. Then, he had to leave but promised to return to her. 10 years passed and she's still waiting...


**_You Promised_**

_Disclaimer: _

_This story is not related to any of the Beyblade series and I do not own Beyblade or the characters in the anime. I only own this plot. Thank you.

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**Full Summary**_

**One Shot AU They met one day under his hideout - a hollow tree - and they became fast friends. They shared their sorrows and happiness until that day when he had to leave for the city with his family. He promised to return to her and their tree, giving her his beloved red and blue cap to keep until he came back to claim it. 10 years passed and she's still waiting for him...

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A woman in her twenties stood in the large expanse of lush green that was the meadows near her countryside cottage – her home. Her chin-length brown hair was being teased by the winds as she stood with an old red and blue cap clutched in her hands and a coil of rope round her waist like a belt. Her ruby eyes were locked upon a distant object – a solitary tree with a bulge. It was a special tree, holding the happiest and saddest memories of her youth, spent mostly in the countryside. It was also her hideout, her private den. Nobody knew about it, except him.

Him… a face from her past, a very familiar and very friendly face. A face she longed to see once more, but wondered if she ever would. Her eyes became moist and they glistened in the faint rays of light. The forcefully repressed memories leaked out slowly. It filled her mind with her first memory of the tree and him…

_A six-year-old girl was sitting at the foot of a tree that had a bulging trunk. Her eyes were dull and unfocused and the corners of her lips were turned slightly downwards. She was unhappy that she would not be able to leave the countryside to go to school; she had heard so much about the city from her uncle who lived there. Instead, her parents had arranged for her to be tutored at home._

_A concerned voice broke her out of her stupor, "Why are you sad?"_

_A young boy wearing a red and blue cap over his navy blue hair was bent over her. He looked genuinely concerned… _

"_I can't go to the city school," she murmured, tears threatening to escape._

"_Oh…"_

"…"

"_I know! I'll show you a place!" Without waiting for her reply, he took hold her hand firmly and dragged her to where a rope ladder hung from a sturdy branch. He let go of her and climbed up, beckoning for her to follow, which she did. She was curious, yet wary at the same time._

_Up in the tree, she noticed an opening leading seemingly into the trunk. He was perched precariously close to the edge. He secured some rope to a branch and let the remaining length fall into the hole. With a reassuring nod and a cheeky smile, he held the rope and slid downwards. Wariness and curiosity increasing at the same time, she decided to follow him and landed in what looked like a playroom lit by several lamps. _

_There was a wooden table, a chair, several toys lying around, some books carelessly stacked in a corner and lastly, the boy stood there grinning widely at her, seemingly proud to own such a place. Slowly, her lips curved upwards and a true smile finally graced her lips._

"_Good! You're smiling at last!" the boy exclaimed, sounding pleased that he had made her smile and become happy. "I'm Tyson, nice to meet you."_

"_Hi… I'm Hilary." _

That day, she became friends with him and they often played and studied together in the tree. But it was usually she who studied while trying to get him to do the same. Tyson liked to have fun. But he was always there for her to share her sorrows and happiness. However, he sometimes liked to annoy her. It became a hobby of his to irritate her at one point in time. They quarreled too, and their tempers complemented each other: both were hot-tempered. And because of that, Hilary called him a "dragon" and he retorted that she was a "wildcat". That became their nicknames. Despite that, he always came back to make her feel better and to make sure she was all right after their quarrels. Their friendship grew stronger over the years and though Hilary home schooled, she did not resent it; she was not alone. She and Tyson shared an unbreakable bond.

When they became youths, Hilary began to feel something more towards Tyson. But it was then when the saddest day of her life came for Tyson had to move to the city after his father clinched a job there. Tyson had no choice but to leave behind their tree, her. She knew something was amiss when he came that day…

"_Tyson! You're late again! How many times must I tell you that punctuality is very important?" she exclaimed, jabbing her hands on her hips as she looked at her longtime friend… and childhood sweetheart. Or at least she knew she liked him a lot._

"_I'm sorry, Hilary," Tyson replied dully as he proceeded to sit down beside her on the branch of their hollow tree._

_She noticed that Tyson was looking rather out of sorts: his auburn eyes had lost their mischievous and cheerful spark, his mouth was set in a grim line and on the whole, he looked unusually serious. Little made Tyson become so serious, so whatever it was that was bothering him would have to be major. _

_Feeling her concern for the navy-haired boy welling up, she asked cautiously, "T-Tyson? Is there anything wrong?"_

"_Hilary, there's something I need to tell you. And I don't think you're going to like to hear it," he began slowly, like he was afraid of her reaction._

_Her apprehension for the answer increased, but she took a breath and said firmly, "Just tell me."_

"_Well, okay. You see, my dad… he, well, got a job in the city. And I know that's great and everything, but the only con I can see is that… we, my whole family, we… we have to move to the city. I… I have to leave this place. I don't want to, but I have to."_

_She was shocked; words failed her. Tyson would have to leave. The love of her life was going to leave her and their tree. But… but it just couldn't be true. Tyson was joking, right? He liked playing pranks on her… He always did that… It…_

"_It's not a joke, Hil… I wish it were… I really do. I… I'm so sorry," he tried to apologize, but it was of no real use to her. He was leaving her. Possibly forever. Her eyes became unfocused and her mind kept replaying the words he had said._

_She blinked out of her stupor when she felt Tyson pressing something into her hands. She looked down and saw Tyson's red and blue cap in her hands. What? Why was he giving her his cap? It was his most prized possession. She raised her eyes to his, silently demanding an explanation as ruby eyes turned moist._

"_Keep it to remind you of me. And I **will** be back, I **will** come back. I don't know when it'll happen, but I promise Hilary, I promise I'll come back to see you again and claim my cap too. You have to take good care of it, and take good care of yourself too," Tyson explained, reassuring the girl at the same time. "H-Hilary? Don't cry, please!"_

_But his plea went unheard and unheeded as her floodgates burst open. Her emotional gate was flung open in such a brutal way that even using all her willpower; she could not control the tears and that overwhelming feeling of sadness. She felt all so lost and alone now that he would be leaving. Her hands grabbed hold of the cap tightly as tears flowed from her eyes. Then, all of a sudden, Hilary flung herself at Tyson, holding him in her arms tightly, not wanting to let go. Tyson returned the embrace. Softly, she murmured amid her tears into his shoulder, "You must come back, Tyson… you **have to**. Please… my little dragon?"_

"_I will. I promise, wildcat." She could hear his sincerity and she was sure that he'd come back one day._

"_Thank you…" Letting go of him, Hilary untied the rope leading into the hollow of their tree, vowing never to enter it without him._

A decade passed, he never came.

"You promised to come back… But you lied," Hilary whispered to the wind, shutting her eyes and clutching the cap tighter. Tyson had never broke a promise to her before, so why now? Didn't he know how much it hurt to wait for him every single day for ten long years? She had waited, she had believed in him. She had so much hope in him, expected so much of him. But… but he had forgotten her. The dragon had lied.

"I didn't."

Hilary froze. It… it couldn't be… T-Tyson?

"Won't you look at me? Wildcat?"

It was his voice again. It had to be him! Ruby-colored eyes flew open at once. But no one was before her; only the endless plains of grass lay there. It was only her imagination – again. She repeated those words once more with her head bowed in resignation.

She was resigned to wait once more.

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As Hilary was imagining Tyson's homecoming, a man appeared next to the lone tree, auburn eyes fixated on the lone female. He was finally back, back where he truly belonged. He strode towards her, his childhood sweetheart, his wildcat, eager to see her after all these long and lonely years. He had promised to return – and he had. They would be reunited.

Finally.

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**Hope there isn't any OOCness... Well, just to say that though I've added a new story, I don't think I'll be updating the rest any time too soon. Really sorry about this, but school's started and I'm becoming really busy these days. Oh well.**

**_-- carzla --_**


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